Westbrook High Sends Grads On Their Way

WESTBROOK — Fifteen minutes before commencement, the pouring rain stopped and the sky brightened. The Westbrook High School Class of 2007 had just that kind of luck.

The 63 members of the class received their diplomas Thursday night in a ceremony awash with memories of the past and lessons for the future -- and not awash with rain.

Set up outside beside the school's track, the graduation ceremony looked to be a complete loss just minutes before it was to begin, as administrators opted to wait out the storm instead of moving indoors.

Then, as the graduating seniors waited by the school for their procession, the rain stopped and the clouds began to part. The seniors -- the boys in purple caps and gowns, the girls in white -- entered, with the sun shining.

Earlier in the evening, the bleak weather seemed to be the worst luck for the graduating class. Salutatorian Andrew Wilson saw his high school experience much the same way but in the end he said his lowest moments taught him the most.

The baseball team missed the state tournament by one game. He was the only student in the class to fail a math test. A teacher caught him in the act of skipping school.

``The times that made me the angriest, the people that frustrated me the most, are precisely the events that taught me the most,'' Wilson said. ``Through these experiences we learn valuable lessons, such as how to deal with setbacks ... and we learn to embrace our surroundings and situations and make the most of them.''

No matter what they do in life, Wilson told his classmates, the lessons they learned in high school, even if they seemed painful at the time, will always be valuable.

The seniors also heard from honor student Kristina Clark and valedictorian Scott Fredrickson, who urged his classmates never to settle for mediocrity.

Superintendent Patricia Charles told the students how she could see their accomplishments reflected in the smiles of the graduates and in the pride shown by the hundreds of onlookers.

``I saw your parents, and I watched the memories wash over their faces,'' Charles said.